wooly wednesday…lambs

First 2016 Shetland lamb arrived yesterday!

…and his twin sister!

Reversible: twice the goodness?

I played a bit more with my Shetland wool roving (that’s surprising, wink!). I used two individual girls’ wool: Brenna’s ‘black’ and Reese’s moorit.

First, two layers or more of one sheep and then another two or three layers of the other sheep’s naturally colored wool.

See, reversible! Twice the goodness!???

The slight difference in each fleece influenced the wet felting process and final character of the project. I added Lincoln ‘fringe’ to both ‘ends’.

Always fun to explore (play) with wool!

therapy

Wet felting (playing with wool) is my go-to THERAPY.

Is that a sheep in the bath tub??? Why YES, it is! (Ugh! Laying over the tub is difficult on the chest!)

My apprentice, Luna, inspecting my ‘work’? I don’t know if she loves the wool or WATER more???!? Rub-a-dub-dub, kitty in the tub!

The ‘finished’ wooly product: my Shetland wool with my friend Chris’s Lincoln raw wool staples as fringe. I haven’t decided whether to needle felt a few sheep on it… or not? Hmmmm…

Cheap therapy for the heart and soul!!

weekend bits

Matt and Katie came home this past weekend (quite unexpectedly). Needless to say, it was so good to have them home even though I accomplish very little… perhaps it’s a good excuse to just ‘visit’ instead.

I did fiddle with yarn bits and charms, ribbons and buttons. I managed to create a few brooches/pins. Perhaps it will hurry Spring along!

 

A great stash buster… almost instant gratification!

Year of the sheep (goat).

You never know what those little bits of yarn and ribbon might inspire!

another cushion: adaptation

I am inspired by the lovely ATSWIM – TWO BIRDS hand-work!! Perhaps slightly infatuated!!

Here is my very first adaptation/creation.

The eagle has landed!!

Another chair-pad option for Katie??! Her school apartment bedroom colors are gray and purple. (She’s coming home this weekend – WOO HOO!!)

This chair cushion is made with various hand-spun, farm-raised and store-bought wool/mohair yarn. I learned a lot from this project. It was fun; I think I’ll make more.

Doilies?

I have a collection of doilies, some that are crocheted by my mother (who will be 90-years-old on Feb 9th) and others (some mass-produced) that I have accumulated over time. I was ‘inspired’ to DO something with them. I often sharing quickie projects that are easily accomplished by beginners, both children and adults.

This little cutie (found on pinterest) has always tickled my fancy! It is a lovely ‘project’ on its own merit. They are very sweet simply hanging in a window or gathered together in a sheepy garland!

image via

But, since I have an overflow of farm-raised wool fleece at my fingertips, I came up with the idea of sandwiching (is that a word?) a crocheted doily between layers of wool and then wet felting them together. The wool and crochet lace/yarn provides another interesting facet and layer of texture. And you know I’m all about texture!!

I think I’m most fond of the black-faced sheep.

Naturally, you may embellish to your heart’s content… whatever little trinkets you have on hand in your stash/junk drawer. Buttons, ribbon, found jewelry bits, rusted hearts, beads, notions and so on and on. You may use felt for the face and legs detail, or needle felt a 3-D head for some sheep?

This time, I actually used a little clay to sculpt a head and hand-painted them with a little art paint. I stitched a vintage button to the ‘body’ and then glued the clay head to the button. But, you decide… they are your creations!

What a sweet gift for someone special on St. Valentine’s Day?? I love ewe sheep (with needle felted heart danglers)!?

Perhaps, a flock of colorful/hand dyed wool and locks would make a fun decoration for the sheepy-themed Easter tree?? Better get busy now!!

Happy fiber’n!

more sheep inspiration…?

Little flying sheep ornie.

Itty bitty sheep?

 

 

 

 

 

Never enough sheep…????

do-over: a merry little sheep

I can hardly believe it’s been F O U R years since I wrote this post… Recycled Wooly Wreath (see post for how-to mini wreath details).

This mini wreath was a cute speedy-quick project made with little snips of recycled/felted wool (sweaters even better) strung on a piece of wire. Simply cute for decorating cupboard knobs and/or adorning a gift?

Most recently, I’ve been busy creating a few ‘new’ sheepy ornies! HAHAHA What a surprise, right? 

I slightly modified this little wreath project to create a cute little sheep ornament and/or a sheepy pin/brooch for another sheep and fiber enthusiast?!!

How-To // You’ll need:

1. Recycled/felted wool (‘ugly’ sweaters perhaps?)
2. Wire (not too heavy gauge)
3. Pipe cleaners, wool roving, buttons, foam or ‘other’ to create a little sheep head/face… let your creative juices flow!
4. Hot glue
5. Pin back or metallic string for hanging

To begin, cut approximately 1-inch little squares (( any color will do )) from your recycled wool. I used about twenty pieces or so… the more wool, the larger your ‘sheep’. You may also add a contrasting colored wool for legs/feet if desired. No two sheep need to be alike!!

 

When you believe your sheep is about the right size, bind the wire tightly – DO NOT LEAVE A HOLE IN THE MIDDLE LIKE A WREATH – and give the wire a tug and twist. Ta da… you have created a little fuzzy sheep body!!

Now comes the FUN part where you give your little sheep personality!! I used a simple black pipe cleaner to bend into the shape of a head ( like the shape of a capital ‘Y’ ). The top of the ‘Y’ become the ears and the bottom of the ‘Y’ is the face/head. Next, wrap/cover the pipe cleaner with black/white wool roving… a few pokes with a felting needle keeps everything nice, dense and tucked into place. You may add more details… eyes, nose, or not. Use a dab of hot glue to attach the head to the body (of wool).

Add a pin back [for a brooch] or a string for a sweet sheepy ornie.

Merry sheep!!

oh no! not another sheep

 

‘How-To’ coming soon! (( Hint: easy peasy! ))

wooly wednesday: sheep on the go!

I have been cleaning/re-organizing my ‘new’ work space for weeks now! I needed to C R E A T E something with a piece of scrap canvas that I had purchased (quite a while ago) at a tag sale for a whopping $3.

THIS wooly sheep blanket provided inspiration for my canvas wall art.

source

My husband made a DIY frame from scrap lumber to which we stapled the canvas.

I applied several coats of Gesso/primer. I then re-created (sketched) multiples of my ‘logo’ sheep onto the canvas.

Because I wanted to create a ewe-nique texture (and reproducible pattern) for each individual sheep, I used an assortment of plain old rubber stamps that I had in my collection.

I used black acrylic paint for the head and legs and hand-applied/inked the stamp (also with acrylic paint) and worked within the outline of my sheep to create a ‘wooly fleece’. Each sheep’s fleece is ewe-nique… can you see??

The finished canvas measures about 43-inches by 31-inches and will grace my wall in my work space… as soon as I attach some hanging hardware [wink]. TA DA… my “Sheep on the Go” wall art masterpiece.

I even added a black sheep. Every family/flock has one…??!